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*Disclosure: I have an ongoing media relationship with TSO. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own.

I attended the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) concert at the Palace in 2014 and 2015, and I can't wait to go this year too - their concerts are always lots of fun and very different from anything else I've attended.

The TSO will be at the Palace of Auburn Hills on December 30 of this year, and will be performing two shows, at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The TSO's tour starts November 17th and goes through the end of December, too - click here to see if they'll be playing in your city!

More info:
Paul O’Neill launched a project in 1996 that over the past 20 years has become a critically-acclaimed, multi-platinum, musical powerhouse: Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The progressive rock group’s record-setting “rock theater” tours sell out venues year after year and have cemented TSO’s status as a must-attend, multi-generational, holiday tradition. Now, TSO’s creator/lyricist/composer O’Neill is proud to announce that in its Platinum anniversary year, the group is bringing back its treasured tale, “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve,” to 61 cities across North America beginning on November 17th and concluding, after 105 shows, with special New Year’s Eve performances in Seattle and Cleveland (see below for a full itinerary). TSO’s Winter Tour 2016 is presented nationally by the Hallmark Channel.

The tour pre-sale opens to fan club members on September 7 through September 9, with the general public on sale set to begin on September 16 (see www.trans-siberian.com for details). TSO is pleased to announce that each concert ticket purchased online will include a digital audio copy of The Ghosts of Christmas Eve. This is the first time these songs have been released in an audio package, and the album features a bonus track titled “Music Box Blues (Daryl Pediford Tribute New York 2004).”

Debuted last year to rave critical and fan reviews, and based on TSO’s multi-platinum DVD and long running PBS fundraiser, “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve,” follows the journey of a runaway who breaks into an abandoned vaudeville theater on December 24th. While seeking shelter from the cold, the teen is discovered by the theater’s caretaker who uses the ghosts and spirits from the building’s past to turn her life around. The rock opera features such enduring fan-favorites as "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24," "O’ Come All Ye Faithful," "Good King Joy," "Christmas Canon," "Music Box Blues," "Promises To Keep," and "This Christmas Day." 2016’s tour will see an all new second set containing some of TSO’s greatest hits and fan-pleasers.

TSO has cemented itself as one of the world’s biggest rock acts, by playing approximately 2,000 shows for nearly 13 million fans, with tour grosses of more than $580 million, and selling in excess of 10 million albums and DVDs. In 2009, Billboard magazine placed TSO at No. 25 on its “Top Touring Artists of the Decade.”

As in all previous years, $1 to $2 of every ticket sold benefits select local charities. To date, in excess of $13 million has been distributed to worthy charities all across North America.

Have you seen the TSO in concert before? If not, do you plan to at some point?

So we've all been there ... that time when you're on an important phone call, and then the call drops. Or even when you need to use the internet on your smartphone, only to realize that you're at your data limit for the month.

I drive all over the metro Detroit area for movie screenings; because of this, most of the time I know where I'm going, but sometimes, I'm in an unfamiliar area or at an unfamiliar theater and I need GPS to know how to get there and back.

A few months ago, I was headed to the AMC Forum (Sterling Heights area) and I wanted to know the best way to get home from there. My phone kept stalling ... and stalling ... and then the Maps app crashed! Gah! I was extremely frustrated. I was finally able to re-start the phone and get safely home, but it TOOK. SO. LONG. Had the Maps app worked the fir…

*Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. As long-time readers of this blog surely know, I travel quite a lot. A few years ago, I only took about 2-3 trips per year, not including trips in the state of Michigan (Grand Haven weekends, etc.), but this past year, I was fortunate in that I was able to travel very frequently.

I recently heard about a new travel site, DirectHotels.com, which is similar to Kayak.com, in that it searches all of the other travel sites (Orbitz, Expedia, etc.) to find the best deals for you. I gave it a bit of a test run to see if that is indeed true.

About the site:
DirectHotels.com is a new hotel comparison tool that challenges the big brands. Travelers can easily compare all the travel sites in one place to find the cheapest hotel. DirectHotels.com compares over 200 bookings sites, so users can be sure about its accuracy. Using DirectHotels.com means that you will never overpay.

I've written these past two years about Bookstock, a huge used book & media sale that takes place at Laurel Park Place, in Livonia, and it's returning again this year, from Sunday, 4/22 through Sunday, 4/29.Read more about the event over at my book blog! I was finally able to check it out last year, and they had a large mix of books and media (including DVDs, Blu-rays, and records).To learn more about Bookstock, click hereto visit my book blog, or visit their official site here.